I'm one of the unlucky people who ordered a Fathom Mermaid. Many months after paying my initial deposit, I was told my machine was nearing completion and it was time to wire the balance--so I did. Haggis even sent me completed customs forms and instructions on how to select a shipping option. It was all pretty convincing.
Does anybody else besides me think Rick should share the blame? He's quick to whore out that license. Here's an idea, maybe only give that license to trusted manufacturers. I get that it's all about money with him but there should be some accountability directed his way towards his involvement in this.
Fathom were selling for 9-10k but now I’ve seen them in the 6s and no one will order them! Whoever has a machine lost a lot of value too with this. Didn’t know the top layer of playfield could come unglued and ruin the entire game.
Cary , this is by far the best content you have ever done . I applaud you for the hard work you are putting into this . I appreciate you sharing it with all of us !!!!!
Great job at putting this mini documentary together! If people have the paperwork to prove what they say, then they shouldn't fear going on camera and saying it.
I was always amazed by the extra quality under the playfield and on the back of Fathoms also given the price and where they were made. Should have been another red flag. Great video content Cary!
I would think at this point Distros would be getting very leery of startups. That might curtail some of the FOMO (i.e. Individuals might give it a 2nd thought if they have to buy direct).
Mate, THANKYOU for putting this together. The silence is deafening and only further feeding the anger in the community. And you can bet he's watching this, knowing that he has ejected himself from this entire hobby forever.
Wayne is one of the longest standing and knowledgeable people in Pinball in Australia. He has also already had interactions with the legal reps for Hartsco. If he's saying something here you bet your butt it's airtight. His head is on the chopping block otherwise.
I did something very similar two years ago using an ATV chain and hot water heater hose. Also shared video of how to make your own. ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-vXcNuKFED_4.htmlsi=72NH-FH1h8X-ZFo4
Hey there! Pinlights here. We've halted sales for two reasons: 1. To catch up with the backlog and 2. get more inventory in. The only thing we're waiting on are cables. I've also put in an order for cables at another fabricator so that we've got multiple options, more inventory and hopefully faster lead times. If you want, go to our website, click on the product you want, then enter your email to be notified when we're back in stock. The next time we open stock up, we don't anticipate running out for a GOOD long while. We appreciate the patience, and sorry you're having to wait a bit longer than anticipated!
My engineering experience would be telling you it happened because of SHRINKAGE. So in the Heat, the 98% cured Laminate playfield timber shrinks another 0.00xx% and the Plastic doesn't shrink. If I had to FIX one, I'd strip it and separate the two layers, spray Contact Adhesive on the Wood surface, then lay the plastic back down CAREFULLY/EXACTLY like doing Cabinet Decals, then replace the hardware using a torque driver set appropriately, after a few days for the C.A. to bond/set (under clampage; sandwich pressure/plates, playfield glasses would do). That would give a positive contact across the whole surface, and with Good Quality non-volatile contact glue and the Playfield now well cured, I'd say there wouldn't be too much further problems with it. I thought the Reinvent the Wheel playfield thing was a bit dumb from the beginning. It's what sank them besides the scamming. They should have just done what everyone else does re. printing, and just printed it on some good quality Hardwood Eucalyptus laminate, which is much more affordable here than Maple, and generally on par I'd say. I don't know what they were using for the timber though, but it's pretty clear that it Shrinks, so EVERYONE may well end up with it EVENTUALLY. I was in the deposit and 1.5k on top. Lost my job and couldn't pay invoice since mid 2023. Lots of people in Australia couldn't Pay thier Invoices I think you'll find. Became Jobless due to 'Mandates', and couldn't pay for something they could have afforded if things hadn't Changed in the world. I could easily afford to have paid them, before suddenly losing my job due to non compliance with 'insane stuff'. It's a con.
Why don't you start one on how Pinball Brothers has been screwing all who bought (paid in full FEB 24) Alien toppers. Most still have not received theirs with the distributers now having them IN STOCK!
i spoke to Damian out side his factory 6 months after the release -saying if there is a fathom mermaid up for grabs i would be interested-because i missed out on mermaid was so exited talking to the man ,then he walked off with head down -hands in his pockets -now i look back back -and relised -his thinking how the fk -how the fk am i going to do this-i thought it was odd at the time ,but . thought what ever ,then upgraded to classic-then three years later after promising all would be finished i paid ,and when i paid in Jan 24 talking to his sister i was saying how good centuaur was -she said do you want ti put a deposit down -i did not
I don’t believe Damien took deposits to get rich. Taking $1.4M (pinside estimate) from 60+ people is not strategic scamming. Having 100 people pissed at you is a terrible idea, and $1M is not enough to hide forever. He was trying to keep the company dream alive by taking funds and buying materials and time. The real issue is poor quality, money mismanagement, and deception in requesting people to pay full amount when machines were nowhere near complete.
Definitely a reason Damien isn't making any statements. He knows he is in deep shit after this whole ruse. I'm sure the advice of his counsel is to keep his mouth shut.
